2006 NBA Finals

[Vern Gagne 0]

The owner looks kind of like a short Phil Jackson.

[bob_barron 0]

Everyone ignore the guy from Oklahoma. Miami WON the title tonight.

 

Still can't believe Alonzo, Jason Williams, and the Glove are actually gonna get rings. Good for them.

 

Especially Mourning with all the adversity regarding his kidney problems.

 

Especially after all that adversity he went through screwing over two basketball teams, and whining like a bitch for a year before he got his way!

 

Zo and Riley do not deserve rings. At all. But I'll try not to keep harping on that, since it will get annoying, I'm sure.

 

I'm happy Shaq won though, it's got to be nice to rub in Kobe's face

[Damaramu 0]

Good thing I have him on ignore but I'm trying to figure out why a Celtics/Pistons fan (odd combo) cares about a series between the Heat and Mavericks?

 

Yup getting booed out of the building. Seriously put this in the locker room.

 

I'm not really a Pistons fan. I just like the 5. If they broke it up I wouldn't care about the Pistons at all.

I care because I like basketball and I hate Zo/Williams/Payton/Shaq and I didn't want to see them given a title. I liked D-Wade going into this but seeing the favoritism that he got made me sick. He doesn't need me to like him he's got the entire NBA hugging his nuts.

[iggymcfly 0]

Was Avery even watching in Game 4 against Memphis? Game 7 against San Antonio? Seriously, I'm dumbfounded that he wouldn't even try to get the ball to Dirk for the key shot in Game 5 or Game 6.

[naiwf 0]

I don't feel like finding the Avery Johnson quote, but whoever made it was 1000% right. If he just got the ball to his superstar, the Mavs would have just taken the series in 6. He does NOT deserve that Coach of the Year trophy.

 

That would be me. I had the feeling Avery was going to lose this series for his team when he called that lob pass to Josh Howard at the end of Game 3, when Dirk would have probably been able to get a wide open look at a 2 for a tie or a game winning three. You can't have one of the 3 best players in the league on your team and never entrust him to take the biggest shot(s) of the year.

 

Shaq may not have won this series, but everyone was blaming him for the losses so it's only fair. Miami probably would have won it last year had he and Wade not been injured. I'm happy for both of them and GP though.

 

LeBron may not have equal talent on his team, but Wade was able to beat the 2 best teams in the league almost entirely by himself. LeBron wasn't able to accomplish that.

[iggymcfly 0]

Yeah, I guess that's Game 3 I was thinking of (besides tonight). There's not much you can do with 1.5 seconds from fullcourt, but the lob, and giving the ball to Terry were both TERRIBLE fucking decisions.

[Kurt Angle Mark 0]

I would be happy for the whole Heat team if fucking Shaq wasn't on the team

 

My hate for him cannot be described in words

[Hawk 34 0]

Johnson is a young coach, hopefully he will learn from his (many) mistakes and improve for the future. It's still a young team.

[Adam 0]

I'd *almost* rather a Kobe and Co. Title win than this.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

Everyone ignore the guy from Oklahoma. Miami WON the title tonight.

 

Still can't believe Alonzo, Jason Williams, and the Glove are actually gonna get rings. Good for them.

 

Especially Mourning with all the adversity regarding his kidney problems.

 

Especially after all that adversity he went through screwing over two basketball teams, and whining like a bitch for a year before he got his way!

 

Zo and Riley do not deserve rings. At all. But I'll try not to keep harping on that, since it will get annoying, I'm sure.

 

I'm happy Shaq won though, it's got to be nice to rub in Kobe's face

 

Well Zo did earn his ring, without him I doubt the Heat make the finals.

 

I feel real sorry for Stan Van Gundy though.

 

LMAO at you guys blaming this on Avery Johnson. He took them to the finals in his 1st full season, name one coach who has done that? You guys nitpick about everything. Try Josh Howard calling a dumbass timeout in Game 5.

[alfdogg 0]

Jason Terry should be the MVP.

[iggymcfly 0]

He probably will, but that's what's so frustrating about a young coach. They make stupid fucking mistakes where anyone with a little bit of experience would know better.

 

Even though it's a terrible comparison, we had a first-year coach my senior year of HS football, and after two good plays, he decided that in the middle of the playoffs, he would overturn our whole offense and turn us from a running team into a passing team. Well, three interceptions later, we lost 21-7 to a team we'd already beat earlier in the season.

 

It's the same thing with Avery. There are only about 4 guys like Dirk in the entire league, and you can't ignore them in crunch time, just because you think you have a cute play drawn up. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid.

[naiwf 0]

Dallas should be the faves to win it next year. But Dirk needs to be able to take over EVERY game like he did against the Spurs and Suns. As much as I like him, he didn't step it up at all in the Finals. Jerry Stackhouse's stupid play probably was the difference maker because Miami would have lost Game 5 with him in the lineup.

 

Controversy aside that was the best Finals since the Jordan era and Wade's individual performance will go down as one of the legendary runs in NBA history.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

Dirk has choke big time this whole series. Stop putting all the blame on Avery.

 

I'll admit at times he made mistakes, but everyone here is trying to put all the blame on him.

 

I think the refs robbed Dallas IMO.

[Damaramu 0]

Controversy aside that was the best Finals since the Jordan era and Wade's individual performance will go down as one of the legendary runs in NBA history.

 

Not for me. last year was a hell of a lot better and didn't have BS.

[naiwf 0]

LMAO at you guys blaming this on Avery Johnson. He took them to the finals in his 1st full season, name one coach who has done that? You guys nitpick about everything. Try Josh Howard calling a dumbass timeout in Game 5.

 

Who signalled the TO in the first place? Yep, it was AVERY JOHNSON. If he doesn't get Howard's attention, Dallas doesn't call that timeout. Avery shitted the bed when it mattered. Everything he did (or I should say, did NOT do) from 6:34 left in Game 3 until tonight negated everything he did until 6:34 left in Game 3.

[iggymcfly 0]

I don't know about that. (Dallas being the favorites next year.) The thing is that at this stage of his career, Wade's just going to get exponentially better season by season. With the experience of getting a ring at the age of 24, he's going to be even more unstoppable next season and every season after that. This was Dallas's golden opportunity, and they just blew it. The idea of waiting 12 more months to even get another shot at Wade (and then probably losing that too) is just excruciating. I feel like I just got stabbed right now.

[alfdogg 0]

I know it's an unpopular opinion, but I also enjoyed last year's finals better. I really hate to keep harping on it, but the referees really took me out of this one, although Dwyane Wade was fantastic, no matter how you spin it.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

 

LMAO at you guys blaming this on Avery Johnson. He took them to the finals in his 1st full season, name one coach who has done that? You guys nitpick about everything. Try Josh Howard calling a dumbass timeout in Game 5.

 

Who signalled the TO in the first place? Yep, it was AVERY JOHNSON. If he doesn't get Howard's attention, Dallas doesn't call that timeout. Avery shitted the bed when it mattered. Everything he did (or I should say, did NOT do) from 6:34 left in Game 3 until tonight negated everything he did until 6:34 left in Game 3.

 

I ain't saying Avery didn't make mistakes, but at the same time you can't put all the blame on him. Mavericks failed as a team.

 

Dirk I think should take most of the blame. I like him, infact I call him the Euro-Larry Bird, but he missed a major free throw in Game 3 that problay cost them the series. For a man who doesn't misses Free Throws, he should hang his head in shame.

[AboveAverage484 0]

Really, Mourning only fucked over one team, the Raptors. Yeah, I don't give a shit about them either.

[bob_barron 0]

Fucked over the Nets with his negative attitude, constant whining, getting into arguments with teammates, and the fact that he quit on the team.

[naiwf 0]

I don't know about that. (Dallas being the favorites next year.) The thing is that at this stage of his career, Wade's just going to get exponentially better season by season. With the experience of getting a ring at the age of 24, he's going to be even more unstoppable next season and every season after that. This was Dallas's golden opportunity, and they just blew it. The idea of waiting 12 more months to even get another shot at Wade (and then probably losing that too) is just excruciating. I feel like I just got stabbed right now.

 

Miami will probably need to replace Payton and Mourning next year. That might not sound like much, but they definitely helped get them over the top. Dallas will be angry/hungry and if they can just keep improving, I don't see anyone being able to stop them next season.

 

Wade should keep getting better, but I don't know how much Shaq's got left in the tank. They've got a great shot next year especially if Dumars breaks up the Pistons, but I don't know about anything else after that.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

If the Nets make a trade for KG, I think they will be the favorites for the East. Espically if they keep Kristic.

 

Zo was a huge part defensively for the Heat, and he was a huge part of their team.

[alfdogg 0]

Getting KG will also necessitate shipping off Carter and/or Jefferson. And Jason Kidd can't play forever, either.

[iggymcfly 0]

I know Avery was a great coach for most of the year, but here's the thing, imagine this was a question on a coaching exam:

 

Your two star players are Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry. Nowitzki is a franchise player, one of the top three in the league, and he's made two huge clutch shots to win series just this season and has been known as a clutch shooter for several seasons. Terry is a good player, who's come up fairly big in big games, but he's spent most of his career with one of the worst teams in the league, and he's never hit a game winner in a major game. Both players have been good three point shooters throughout their career. Dirk is 10-22 from the field this game and 1-2 from the three point line. Terry, on the other hand, is 7-24 from the field, and 2-10 from the 3-point line. Who do you want shooting a three-pointer to tie the game?

 

Now, would anyone here honestly get this one wrong? Would anyone want someone who got this question wrong coaching their team? I mean I just don't get what happened here. It's not like they ran some deceptive play that looked like it was for Dirk and ended up giving it to Terry. Terry just dribbled the ball up the court and shot it. This shit drives me crazy. I mean why? Why, why, why, why, why?

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

Getting KG will also necessitate shipping off Carter and/or Jefferson. And Jason Kidd can't play forever, either.

 

Shipping off Carter or Jefferson wouldn't be a bad idea if they can get KG in return. I would do that in a heart beat. Aslong as they keep Kristic, they would be a good team.

 

They wouldn't be able to ship off both for KG because not only is it a dumbass trade, but the contracts don't match up.

[naiwf 0]

If the Nets make a trade for KG, I think they will be the favorites for the East. Espically if they keep Kristic.

 

Zo was a huge part defensively for the Heat, and he was a huge part of their team.

 

As alfdogg mentioned, getting KG means losing at least 2/3 of the Carter, RJ & Kristic trio. Kidd is starting to look old, and while the Nets would easily win the division with Garnett, Kidd and the rest of the team, I don't think they could win the 12 games needed to get to the Finals, and I wouldn't pick them to beat any of the teams in the West.

 

If Shaq gets his rest and Wade stays healthy, Miami will easily win the division and probably get the 2 or 3 seed again. Wade has proven he can win two straight series all by himself, and I think that would be enough to get out of the East again now that the Pistons have lost their aura of invincibility.

[alfdogg 0]

Well obviously if you're only losing one of them, then you've got to do it. Chances are though, that Minnesota would ask for two of the three, along with probably a random bench player and a draft pick(s).

[Guest Vitamin X]

I actually don't mind this so much, I was out for some of the celebration, and it was fun.

 

I still don't like Shaq all that much, but again, I also agree it wasn't so much him that brought the title singlehandedly to the city like he did for the Lakers' first two championships. Wade's free throw shooting won the series, that and their great defense on Dallas the last four games.

 

I still think trading Shaq was the right thing to do, Shaq's prime is done and he can go out on top. I severely doubt he'll be able to do much in a couple years, while I think the Lakers still are set up for the future. The Heat got their championship now, and they'll dismantle the team and suck pretty soon, and the fans will completely abandon them just like the Marlins.

 

Oh, and by the way, Shaq's Finals record without Kobe is 4-8 now.

[Lt. Al Giardello 0]

Who would you rather have on your team, Kevin Garnett or Vince Carter/Jefferson?

 

No way Jersey trades both of them, and no way would Minnesota be stupid enough to ask for both of them. Like I said they wouldn't be able to trade off Both of them for KG because cap's salary don't match up.

 

I can see Minnesota looking to get Kristic in return if they want to trade Jefferson but not Carter. Losing Carter and getting KG in return would be fine. Having Jefferson as your leading scorer would be fine. He was their best scorer during the K-Mart/Jefferson/Kidd trio.

 

Still, a team with KG/Kristic/Jefferson/Kidd would be a force to reckon with in the East.

 

Honestly though I think it's time to get rid of Lawerence Frank. He's a good young coach and has a bright future, but I can't see the Nets taking the East with him as coach.